Lesbians, Furries, Kissing Men, and A New Belt in the Sandhills of Nebraska
My wife Julia and I left western North Carolina in our homemade gypsy vardo wagon and arrived four days later in the Sandhills of Nebraska, where we spent the night in a cabin owned by a rancher and his wife. They own a leather shop, and I asked her if she could make me a new belt. “Sure,” she said and told me to drop by the leather shop the next morning.
From Starved to Star
A kind soul rescued him from a herd of eighty feral horses, some of which were starved, others of which had broken legs. And yet, he survived. Read the amazing story of Magneto the Magnificent, my wife Julia’s new horse, at her blog Saddle Under the Stars.
Little Red Vardo Gypsy Wagon Road Trip
This week, my wife Julia and I hitched our little red vardo gyspy wagon to the Subaru and headed west. It’s the same wagon my mule Polly pulled across most of Newfoundland and then through Pamlico County in eastern North Carolina. It featured in the “Our State” / UNC-TV’s episode “Mule Rider” which won a regional Emmy Award for director Morgan Potts.
Why You Need a Hay Moisture Meter
If you…
- think the horse hay you’re buying is dry but don’t know the exact moisture content (ex: 12 %)
- pride yourself in being able to stick your hand into a bale of hay and say, “this hay is dry”
- wonder why the hay you bought in August smells stale by the next April
…then you need a hay moisture meter (also called a moisture tester).
How do I know this? Because I’ve made… Continue reading
Snake Bites Mule
A while back, Julia and I rode spent six weeks traveling with two saddle and one pack mule from our farm in western North Carolina to Virginia and back. We posted a lot of stories on this trip but here’s one I never got around to sharing with you.
Julia was riding a mule named Dusty we’d borrowed from our friend Ronald Hudson. I was riding my mule Brick. As… Continue reading
Casper the Super-friendly Cat up for Adoption
AUGUST 26: CASPER UPDATE Great big thanks to our neighbor Brandon Lane Darrin who recognized Casper, the mucho-cool cat who showed up at our barn this week. It turns out Casper is “Kit Kit”, our neighbor’s cat. He disappeared in late March and has been reunited with his family, a mom and dad and three kids. A great ending to the story. Our barn’s a little quiet now since he left….
Obituary for an Imperfect Dog
Snookie was imperfect like the rest of us. This week he was put to sleep under our chestnut tree. Julia wrote him a beautiful obit at her ConsideringAnimals.com blog. It starts “He was comfort. He was afraid of thunder.” He also channeled Keith Richards and sometimes drank too much whiskey. Check out the full obit at: ConsideringAnimals.com.
Snookie: 2008 – 2021
He started life in a ditch, could out-howl a tin coyote and cleaned a skillet better than a scrub pad. Today, his life ended under our chestnut tree. Our dog Snookie is gone. My wife Julia and I are torn up over this. The longer story of his life is coming.
Robbins Farmers Day: Wagons, Faces and Feet
A teamster, a parade and a mule. This weekend mule Polly and I hung out with Ronald Hudson at Farmers Day in Robbins, NC. He and I were in the parade and I made some photos I thought you’d enjoy. They’re loosely in the order they happened.
LiL Eagleman: Loving a Leucstic Chipping Sparrow
Could you grow to love a leucistic sparrow? This week my wife Julia wrote about LiL Eagleman, a rare, white-headed sparrow she’s fallen for. You can read the whole story right here on her ConsideringAnimals.com blog.
